This is the first time that DU has indicated that it is even willing to consider a 3-year honours programme, in place of the four-year undergraduate programme.

| TNN | Updated: Jun 26, 2014, 16:22 IST

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NEW DELHI: Against all expectations, the first response to University Grants Commission's letter on restoring the three-year-undergraduate programme from Delhi University (DU) seems to have done little to resolve the standoff, even as admission process continues to remain affected on Thursday.
In his first statement since announcing that the Delhi University vice-chancellor has resigned, spokesman Malay Neerav said that DU is considering a "blended proposal" put forth by some "eminent personalities".

Neerav said that DU sent the letter to the University Grants Commission on Thursday.

This is the first time that DU has indicated that it is even willing to consider a 3-year hons programme.

"The university is of the opinion that given the situation where admissions are being delayed, this blended proposal from some eminent personalities may be the way forward."

ABVP activists celebrate the UGC's diktat to DU on FYUP

While Neerav didn't elaborate on the names of these academics, the letter refers to a proposal made by a group of academics on Wednesday, which essentially reduces the number of discipline course while retaining the massively unpopular foundation ones.

Neerav further added that DU has been receiving letters from UGC but what UGC demands can't be achieved in the time given.

DU playing with the future of students: Critics

The DU teachers' association has already rejected the proposal from the academics — many of whom were members of the task force that introduced FYUP in the first place.

Against all expectations, the first response to University Grants Commission's letter on restoring the three-year-undergraduate programme from Delhi University seems to have done little to resolve the standoff, even as admission process continues to remain affected on Thursday. In response to UGC's Wednesday letter to the registrar of DU reiterating its order to comply with the three-year-undergraduate programme, DU, while stating that to restore the three-year structure in existence prior to FYUP can be done only after getting all the statutory approvals including that of the committee of courses, academic and executive councils, also stated that the university is actively considering the proposal by "eminent citizens".

However, anti-FYUP factions in the university, which at present are in majority, are slamming the proposals by saying that this is nothing but vice-chancellor Dinesh Singh's back room tactics.

Protest against FYUP

Teacher groups are questioning as to when there is already a standing committee set up by the UGC which had already proposed measures to restore three-year structure, "Why is DU 'actively considering' this new proposal which is nothing but an even worse version of FYUP? Why is DU not actively considering the standing committee's proposal instead? Who is VC trying to fool now?" asked DU Students' Union president, Aman Awana, who is also a member of the standing committee.

Even the group "eminent citizens" are coming in for sharp criticism as teachers are asking if they had consulted the students and teachers while proposing the new structure, or had simply consulted Dinesh Singh and his core group.

Slamming the proposal, Vijaya Venkataraman of Democratic Teachers' Front said: "We don't want reduction of substandard foundation courses. They should be scrapped. The proposal talks of honours with 17 papers. We stick to 18 which were there in semester despite that too being a dilution of our earlier course. The optional fourth year with honours in research poogramme is meaningless and vague and we reject it as colleges do not have infrastructure for research or for accommodating extra batch of students. Where is the space for restoration of BA, BSc and BCom programme courses? The previous three-year format had concurrent and interdisciplinary courses (instead of useless FCs) which must be retained alongside."

Tearing apart DU's letter to the UGC, the teachers are saying that the university administration is playing with the lives of young students even now and have no intention of resolving the issue. "Had the intentions being right, the VC would not have conspired behind doors and come out and made a statement and would have started the process of change. It has been 10 days and there is no sign of VC even as lakhs of students are held hostage to his ego. Ten days, after ignoring all previous letters of the UGC, the university responded after "eminent citizens" did the ground work to save Dinesh Singh and his illegal reforms," J Khuntia, chairman, Academics for Action and Development (Rathi), said.

Khuntia posing a question to the university asked, "If the old system of three years will require approval of statutory bodies which will require time, won't the new proposals of the eminent citizens require approvals?"

Student groups agitating against FYUP

The neutrality of the eminent citizens group itself is being questioned as "the signatories consist of professors and principals close to the VC. The first signatory is currently with the Cluster Innovation Centre. Then there are signatories who were part of the VC appointed task force responsible for implementing the FYUP", Venkataratnam said.

Meanwhile, Aisa activists were detained by police at around 11.30am near Central Secretariat who gathered to start a march to Rashtrapati Bhavan demanding the President of India's intervention and break the deadlock.

At North Campus, police resorted to lathicharge against anti-FYUP protesters.

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